Jun. 9, 2013

A runner winds his way down the Poudre Canyon on May 5 during the Colorado Marathon. / Dawn Madura/Coloradoan library

Written by

Cathy Payne

USA Today

Do you remember what you had for breakfast? If you’re a healthy eater, there’s a greater chance that you’ll recall.

A healthy lifestyle is linked to better memory across all adult age groups, even if you’re younger than 40, a new study finds.

UCLA researchers and the Gallup organization worked on a poll of 18,552 U.S. adults age 18 and older.

Healthy eating, not smoking and exercising regularly were linked to better self-perceived memory abilities. Respondents across all age groups who engaged in just one healthy behavior were 21 percent less likely to report memory problems than those who didn’t engage in such behaviors.

Researchers said they were surprised to find that about 14 percent of the youngest group (ages 18-39) complained about their memory. About 22 percent of middle-age adults (ages 40-59) and 26 percent of older adults (ages 60-99) did.

“Memory issues were to be expected in the middle-aged and older groups, but not in younger people,” said the study’s lead author, Gary Small, director of the UCLA Longevity Center.

In general, younger people’s memory problems might differ from those in older adults, Small said. For example, stress might play a bigger role, he added. Still, the survey’s findings reinforce the importance of leading a healthy lifestyle at all ages to help limit cognitive decline, he said.

“Along with the other healthy behaviors, it’s likely that healthy eating is helping keep the heart and blood vessels healthy,” said Mary Ann Johnson, national spokeswoman for the not-for-profit American Society for Nutrition. “The brain needs a healthy blood supply to function.”

She said protecting your memory isn’t just for older adults. “We think of losing one’s memory as late in life, but it is a very long process that has been playing out over decades.”

Neil Levin, spokesman for the not-for-profit American Nutrition Association, said, “The earlier signs of people’s memory starting to decline in younger years are not necessarily associated with Alzheimer’s,” but certain behaviors might be risk factors.

“A lot of young people tend to feel either they are invulnerable or they are not going to live a long time, so they might engage in riskier behaviors in terms of diet, smoking and lack of exercise that would affect them long term,” he added.

Small, a professor of psychiatry and biobehavioral sciences at the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior at UCLA, said that if younger people are experiencing memory problems, they should see their doctor. “The sooner they get help, the better the outcome.”